Area pair part of pilot officiating program
By: Scott Kraus
May-Ying Medalia and Jaclyn Gaudioso-Radvany do not look very intimidating.
After all, May-Ying is a 14-year-old freshman at Princeton High School, while Jaclyn is a 14-year-old eighth-grade student at Stuart County Day School. Both are blessed with exceedingly pleasant dispositions to go along with their athletic talents. They show no signs of aggression or malice.
But if you are a USA Field Hockey player in New Jersey, Medalia and Gaudioso-Radvany have the ability to strike fear in your heart and stop you dead in your tracks, if only on the playing field.
Medalia and Gaudioso-Radvany are field hockey officials, part of a new movement in central New Jersey to encourage young teenagers to work as referees for USA Field Hockey tournaments.
In recent years, field hockey has exploded in popularity among middle school and high school girls, creating sudden shortages of officials.
"Many lower level games have to be cancelled and sometimes even varsity games are cancelled due to lack of umpires," said Christopher Maloney, the Field Hockey Umpire Coach who recruited Medalia and Gaudioso-Radvany, as well as several other teenage recruits.
Over the weekend of June 4-5, Medalia and Gaudioso-Radvany were among nine minors to get paid to officiate field hockey matches at Mercer County Community College, the first time minors were paid to officiate field hockey games in the United States.
The girls officiated their first under-14 tournament this past winter.
Both girls are outstanding field hockey players as well as officials, and they have discovered unexpected benefits from their officiating.
"I understand the game better now," explained Gaudioso-Radvany. "When the official makes a call, I know why, so now I know what the officials are looking for, instead of make the same mistakes over again."
Added Medalia: "It’s fun for me. I learn a lot more about the game, and I have more respect for the officials."
Sometimes coaches and players do not share that respect for officials.
"One time this winter, one coach was yelling at Jaclyn and I the whole game, and it made it hard to make the call because you knew you were about to get yelled at," Medalia explained.
But the girls understand the difficulty of their job and succeed with each other’s support.
"I gave Jackie a thumbs-up whenever she made a good call," said Medalia. "The support helps out a lot."
As for the future, both girls are eager to continue working as officials.
"It’s a great learning experience," said Gaudioso-Radvany. "I’m a better official now, and a better field hockey player because of it."